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Seychelles repeals colonial-era law banning gay sex
Seychelles repeals colonial-era law banning gay sex
By Pink News, 18 May 2016
Popular holiday destination the Seychelles is opening its arms to LGBT people – passing a law to legalise gay sex. Section 151 of the country’s Penal Code states that a man who has sex with a man “against the order of nature” can be jailed for up to fourteen years. The law is a hang-over from British colonial rule, and convictions are already very rare – but the Seychelles had pushed to scrap the law entirely. The country has seen a boon in European tourism after the newly-wed Duke and Duchess of Cambridge – Prince William and Catherine – spent their honeymoon there in 2011. Tourism accounts for nearly 20% of GDP – and the industry employs 15 percent of the country’s workforce. However, it has largely remained a ‘no-go’ area for LGBT tourism due to the penal code. The country’s Parliament this week passed the Penal Code (Amendment) Bill, 2016. It says: “This Bill seeks to amend section 151 of the Penal Code in order to decriminalise unnatural offences specified.